Feb

New Android 4.2.2 Features: Toggle From Quick Settings, Better App Download Notifications, and Some New Sounds!

Posted by Ron Amadeo in Jelly Bean 4.2, News

Last Updated: February 20th, 2013

Android 4.2.2 is out, and while an OCD-fueled 4.2.2 edition of Getting To Know Android is on the way, we figured it would be a good idea to highlight the big user facing changes that came with this release. We already covered the new ADB Whitelist and posted the raw developer changelog, so this should be the last of the important stuff.

New Download Notifications

First up is the new notification for in-progress app downloads, which now shows the percentage and an estimated time remaining for your app downloads while they are happening. Or, if you want to be technical about it:

Calculate speed of in-progress downloads and estimate time remaining
until completion. Uses a moving average that is weighted 1:1 with
the most recent 500ms sample. Funnels timing data to notifications
through DownloadHandler.

Feb

HTC Droid DNA To Get Updated To Version 2.04.605.2 710RD, Bringing A Slew Of Improvements

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in DROID DNA, HTC, News, Verizon Wireless

Verizon's newest Droid is set to receive a software update over the air, and it actually has a number of important fixes and improvements. This isn't going to bump the device up to a new version of Android, but it's still a hefty download at 103.5 MB.

Here is the full list of changes coming in the update:

User can load videos on HuluPlus
Improvements to Hotspot connectivity have been made
Improvements to Audio Quality for wired headsets and earpieces have been made
Bluetooth connectivity and volume level for specific models have been improved
Enhanced reliability and stability of the Contacts List have been made
Wi-Fi Connectivity has been improved
Improvements to default browser for zooming capability have been made
Incoming messages display with the correct timestamp
Enhanced Recent Apps functionality has been improved

Granted, a lot of this should not have been busted in the first place, but it's nice to see so many fixes in one package.

Feb

Carbon App Backup Updated With Battery Life Improvements, Better Syncing, And More

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

The new app backup offering from ClockworkMod is one of the most impressive apps we've seen recently. It makes saving your app data a breeze, and it doesn't even require root. The initial release was good, but Koush has pushed an update that adds a few features and cleans up some errant bugs.

Here's the full list of changes:

Notification progress bars
External SD Card support
Fix battery drain bug in carbon server
Android sync works over wifi now, and allows APK sync
Temple Run (and others) Fix: Restores now support external files directory
Scheduled backups now notifies about any lock screen issues and no longer unnecessarily start the Carbon server
Create a .nomedia file per backup
Backup and restore confirm is now more reliable
Fixed issues on Asus tablets
Detect desktop backup password errors

Of particular interest here is the fix for battery drain while running the Carbon server.

Feb

Stock Android Isn't Perfect: Jelly Bean 4.2 Edition

Posted by Ron Amadeo in Features, Jelly Bean 4.2, Stock Android Isn't Perfect

Last Updated: February 7th, 2013

A few months ago I wrote "Stock Android Isn't Perfect," an article where I turned my usual harsh UX critique on stock Android, instead of just picking on TouchWiz and Sense all the time in my reviews. The article went over pretty well, and even got a few responses from Googlers! I didn't cover everything that was wrong with Android, though, and there have been a bunch of updates since the original article, so it's about time I wrote a sequel.

So we're officially making this a series now, and it'll serve two purposes: One, there's a new version of Android out, and more things to complain about; and two, to give credit where it's due, because, since I wrote that article, a lot of things have been fixed.

Dec

Adobe Stops Updates For All Touch Apps But Photoshop: 'Some Of Our Efforts Have Been Successful, Others Have Been Less So'

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Applications, News

In a somewhat disappointing turn of events, Adobe has just announced (following their disappearance from the Play Store) an end to development for all their touch apps on Android except Photoshop Touch (Ideas is still alive for iOS users), meaning Adobe has essentially killed their Kuler, Ideas, Debut, Proto, and Collage apps for Android.

In a post to the Creative Cloud Team Blog, Adobe explains that while some of their efforts in "exploring how the creative process can be augmented and enhanced on touch devices" have been successful, others "have been less so." It is for that reason the team is ceasing active development for the apps.

Dec

AT&T's Samsung Galaxy S III Getting Android 4.1.1 Update Through Kies Right Now

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in AT&T, Galaxy S III, News

Sprint and T-Mobile might have beaten the big boys to the punch, but now it's AT&T's turn to get its Galaxy S III updated to (almost) the latest and greatest version of Android. The 4.1.1 update has started showing up for users of the AT&T Galaxy S III (that's the SGH-i747) in the Samsung Kies update and sync software.

Update 12/4/2012: AT&T just announced the update, and it looks like it will indeed be coming only via Kies.

The device launched with Android 4.0.4, so users can expect some solid additions in this update like Google Now, project butter, and enhanced notifications.

Nov

Motorola Finalizes $100 Trade-Up Program For Old Devices – Basically A Rebate Deal

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Atrix 2, Atrix 4G (Olympus), CLIQ 2, Droid 3, Droid X2, Motorola, News, Photon 4G, Triumph, XPRT

When Motorola announced a few months back that it was not going to update most of its 2011 Android devices to Jelly Bean, owners were understandably upset. Moto attempted to calm the masses by offering a $100 trade-in credit. Now the details have been finalized and the program is looking much less appealing than everyone had hoped.

Eligible devices are the Droid 3, Droid X2, Admiral, Atrix 2, Atrix 4G, Cliq2, Electrify, Photon 4G, XPRT, Titanium, and Triumph. If you have one of these, you're in the program. Rather than offering you a discount on the purchase of your new phone, this is basically a glorified rebate.

Oct

LG Spectrum ICS 4.0.4 Update (Build VS920ZV7) Rolling Out To Devices Soon

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in LG, News, Spectrum

Ah, the poor LG Spectrum. Soon after it was released with mediocre Gingerbread-based software the Samsung Galaxy S III showed up to rain on LG's parade. Well, the Spectrum is getting a big update to Android 4.0.4 that should make owners much happier. Watch out, though. It clocks in at a whopping 384MB.

Many of the new features will be familiar to users of ICS on other devices, but some of it is part of LG's Android skin. Features include:

Customizable lock screen shortcuts
Customizable home screen launch bar
ICS system theme
ICS-style app drawer with widgets
ICS multitasking
ICS-style notifications
Quick settings in the notification panel
New power saving functionality
ICS data usage monitor
Verizon Remote Diagnostic Tool (if you're into that sort of thing)

Yes, Jelly Bean has been out for months, but this was not a terribly well-received phone.

Oct

Android 4.1.2 OTA (JZO54K) For Soju Nexus S Is Now Available For Download

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in News, Nexus S (Crespo/Soju)

The dedicated Android community has a way of tracking down OTA update files almost before the rollout begins. This is again the case for the newest Android 4.1.2 update for some variants of the unlocked Nexus S. Waiting for updates is for chumps, so get your Nexus S in hand, and proceed with caution.

To use this update file, your Nexus S has to meet the following conditions:

The device must be the Soju variant with model number i9020T or i9023. In case you don't recall, the i9020T has T-Mobile 3G, and the i9023 is one of the overseas versions.